Box Office: ‘TMNT’ Stays No. 1; ‘Let’s Be Cops’ Beats ‘Expendables 3’

The third ‘Expendables,’ hurt by piracy, comes in almost $10 million less than expected for a franchise low

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Guardians of the Galaxy easily stayed atop the North American box office as The Expendables 3 underperformed in its debut, grossing just $16.2 million.

The third ‘Expendables,’ hurt by piracy, comes in almost $10 million less than expected for a franchise low

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Guardians of the Galaxy easily stayed atop the North American box office as The Expendables 3 underperformed in its debut, grossing just $16.2 million.

Disney and Marvel’s Guardians, crossing the $200 million mark in its third weekend domestically, followed in North America with an estimated $24.7 million for a cume of $222.3 million through Sunday (that’s ahead of fellow summer tentpole The Amazing Spider-Man 2, which grossed $203 million in North America). Better yet, Guardians raced past the $400 million mark at the global box office.

Expendables 3, featuring a multigenerational lineup of action stars, is hoping to make up ground overseas, where it began rolling out this weekend in a number of markets, including Russia, a haven for action films. Numbers weren’t immediately available.

The Expendables series is the brainchild of Sylvester Stallone and Avi Lerner, whose Nu Image/Millennium partnered with Lionsgate on the series. The films have generally cost in the $90 million range to produce and have done especially big business overseas. Expendables 2 took in $220.4 million internationally, compared to $85 million in North America.

Lionsgate distribution chief Richie Fay said he couldn’t comment on the impact of the piracy, but said a number of factors played a role in the movie’s diminished opening. He noted the series is playing older, despite the deliberate attempt to make the threequel more appealing to younger audiences. Moviegoers over the age of 25 made up 66 percent of ticket buyers this weekend, compared to 65 percent for Expendables 2 and 60 percent for the first Expendables.

“The good news is the A- CinemaScore. The folks that are getting to see it are really enjoying it. I think we’re in a good place as far as the older audience coming out over a period of time,” Fay said.

Buddy action comedy Let’s Be Cops, starring Damon Wayans Jr. and Jake Johnson, cost Fox a modest $17 million to make. Directed by Luke Greenfield, the comedy follows two friends who pretend to be Los Angeles police officers. Andy Garcia, Nina Dobrev, Rob Riggle, Keegan-Michael Key and James D’Arcy also star in the film, which earned a B CinemaScore.

“Honestly, it shows that people want to go to the movies and laugh,” said Fox distribution chief Chris Aronson. Let’s Be Cops skewed notably younger, with moviegoers under the age of 25 accounting for 54 percent of all tickets bought. Caucasians made up 50 percent of the audience, followed by African-Americans (20 percent) and Hispanics (17 percent).

Going after younger moviegoers and faith-based audiences was The Giver, directed by Phillip Noyce and based on Lois Lowry’s 1993 YA novel of the same name. More than two decades in the making, the $30 million film was co-financed and co-produced by The Weinstein Co. and Walden Media.

The Giver, starring Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep and Brenton Thwaites, came in slightly less than expected after earning a B+ CinemaScore.

Here are the top 10 estimates for the weekend of Aug. 15-17 at the domestic box office: